Angular Momentum

up:: 031 MOC Classical Mechanics

Given an origin $O$, a particle with position ${\vec{r}}_O$ and momentum $\vec{p}$ has angular momentum

$$\vec{l}={\vec{r}}_O\times \vec{p}$$

Note that it is determined by the common plane of ${\vec{r}}_O$ and $\vec{p}$.

Properties

• Angular momentum is composed of intrinsic angular momentum and center of mass angular momentum
• Only external forces exert torque upon a center of mass